Chapter 20 Pseudo-substitute, real starter
On November 2nd, the Spurs will face the Grizzlies at home!
The bear people are fearless! The grizzly bear today is not the sick bear it was two or three years ago.
The Grizzlies before 2020 have been in a state of decline since Mike Conley was injured. The Western Conference has been at the bottom for consecutive years, and Marc Gasol can no longer stay.
The Grizzlies front office was also determined to strengthen, no, to reorganize. They pieced together some role players or semi-main players here and there. Unexpectedly, the team's strength improved a lot, and they miraculously scored in the 19-20 season.
In the playoffs, even though we missed the first round, at least we made it.
The addition of championship center Varan Ciunas has completely lifted the Grizzlies out of the bottom ranks. FMVP Iguodala, this veteran's defensive ability is beyond doubt. Together with Crowder, the Grizzlies' defensive ability is only
It can be described as terrifying.
There are also some role players, such as former Spurs Kyle Anderson, who is known as the Time Lord. His slow passing and his own unique rhythm make his style of play unique. Solomon Hill, Winslow,
The Grizzlies, composed of players such as Dion West and Jordan Bell, have the ability to compete with the Spurs.
There seems to be something wrong. The Grizzlies ranked eighth in the Western Conference last season, and the Spurs ranked 11th in the Western Conference. It should be whether the Spurs have the ability to challenge the Grizzlies.
Valanciunas won the ball with a jump ball for the Grizzlies. Time Lord Anderson controlled the ball and slowly came to the frontcourt like an old man.
Dejounte Murray, who was on defense, was very familiar with him. After all, the two were teammates. But even Murray, who was familiar with him, could not take advantage of Anderson. Several attempts to win the ball failed, and Anderson always
He avoids it slowly and in his own unique rhythm.
Some people say that basketball must be fast and powerful to look good, such as James' bulldozer-like attack on the basket and Venus Westbrook's unstoppable breakthrough. However, there is also a slow rhythm. As long as you use your own skills, it will always be effective.
The Grizzlies' first attack failed to hit. The Grizzlies have enough defense but not enough offense. The team lacks shooters and high-quality court players.
In the transition attack, Ade was killed by Varanka inside, Boltel was also restrained by Crowder, and DeRozan was watched hard by Iguodala. The Spurs' offense was almost stuck in the same way as the Grizzlies.
At a standstill, Murray really didn't know who to give the ball to.
Belinelli, who was under the least pressure, missed the shot and Varan got the rebound. In this way, the two sides defended each other, 0-0 in the first two minutes!
The audience looked at each other eye-to-eye, and when they saw the Spurs uniforms the other party was wearing, they confirmed that they were on the wrong court. What we were watching was basketball, not football.
Murray's defensive foul allowed Anderson to go to the free throw line and make 1 of 2 free throws, finally scoring the only point of the game.
In the next round, Murray was intercepted by Anderson, which made the old man furious. Are you planning not to score in the first quarter?
0 to 3 in 3 minutes, the old man couldn't sit still.
Popovich waved his hand to Murray, "Come on, young man, let me tell you something! Oh, by the way, Ray, come on."
Radar accepted the cheers of the fans and came on the radar only three minutes into the first quarter, which the fans never expected.
Radar feels that the Spurs will definitely not be happy if they play a positional battle with the Grizzlies. Their defense is really good, their personal defensive ability is strong, and they have a good zone defense formation.
In the world of martial arts, everything is invincible except fast, so the Spurs must play fast balls and hit three-pointers!
Whether facing Kyle Anderson or Jordan Bell, or Solomon Hill or Winslow, Radar has the advantage of speed.
After 4 seconds of passing, Radar patted the ball with one hand and stretched out his left hand to signal his teammates to move.
DeRozan bypassed Iguodala and ran towards the baseline. Belinelli provided support from the outside and Ade responded near the free throw line.
Radar passed to DeRozan on the bottom line. DeRozan passed the ball back. Ade stepped forward to pick and roll. Radar broke through from the right. The radar that hit the penalty area attracted Varan's defense.
In front of Ade was Claude, who had an obvious height advantage and passed the ball from a high position. After receiving the ball, Ade made a mid-range shot.
The Spurs finally scored their first open game score.
Popovich pointed at the radar and said to Murray off the court: "Watch carefully, wouldn't you play like this?"
Murray looked innocent. If I had his speed, I would be the next Tracy McGrady.
Not to be outdone, Varan completed a one-handed chop through Bortle inside. During the counterattack, Radar responded with a fast-break mid-range shot.
In order to strengthen the defense, Pop brought Gay on to replace Belinelli.
With this lineup, the Spurs' defense is already as good as the Grizzlies', because their offense has obvious shortcomings.
Radar once again got the ball and kept running. Anderson couldn't find Radar, forget it, just defend anyone.
DeRozan: Ray is there!
Anderson: Forget it, I won’t run anymore, I’m tired.
Iguodala, who was misplaced on defense, looked at the dazzling dribbling of the radar and remained unmoved. His fake moves were ineffective and his changes of direction failed to open up space.
Iguodala, the FMVP and best defensive player, is indeed experienced. The only thing that Radar can use is speed, but now his dribbling is forced to stop and he cannot dribble again.
His teammates kept moving to create opportunities for Radar, but Iguodala just stared at Radar. He couldn't pass the ball, so he had to shoot.
With his legs bent and the radar taking off, Iguodala shot almost at the same time.
Radar landed and shook his hand. The ball was not thrown, but you hit it in the wrong place!
Radar went to the free throw line and made two free throws.
Then Radar kept attacking the basket and reproduced the finger-twirling technique, which made the fans hooked. He made continuous breakthrough layups. Radar also kept causing fouls on the opposite side. In the first quarter, Varan committed one foul and Iguodala committed two fouls.
, Claude committed one, Anderson committed one.
In the second quarter, Popovich waved his hand, "Lei, are you tired?" Seeing Radar shaking his head, Popovich simply said, "Go on."
Radar led the Spurs' bench, which completely overwhelmed the Grizzlies' bench, and the point difference was widened in the second quarter.
48 to 41, the Spurs led by 7 points entering the second half.
After the change of sides, Radar sat off the court to rest. Patty Mills made two consecutive three-pointers to expand the score again. Mills went crazy and couldn't stop it.
The Grizzlies can only rely on Varan and Crowder's second offense inside to support themselves.
After the Spurs' two three-pointers, their firepower also stagnated, and they once again fell into the Grizzlies' defensive position, as if stuck in a quagmire. They obviously had the strength and hit rate, but they just couldn't make the shot.
When Radar went into battle again and used his speed to attack the Grizzlies' defensive formation, his teammates seemed to be activated again. Today, Ade is very happy and the mid-range shot is also very good. Although Claude is strong and strong, he cannot stand up to Ade's height.
, Radar can always find his position, and today Radar got 4 assists from Ade.
Relying on the superiority of the radar, the Spurs continuously attacked the Grizzlies' zone defense and cut a big hole in the iron wall. The Grizzlies had no choice but to surrender, and Varan, Iguodala and other main players left the game one after another.
The Spurs defeated the Grizzlies 95-83. Ade scored a game-high 27 points and 6 rebounds, while Radar contributed 13 points, 11 assists and 3 steals.
Seeing Radar receiving cheers from the fans and praise from his teammates, Murray fell silent again. In this game, I am not the starter, but Radar is.
Chapter completed!